1,720,952 research outputs found
Fiber neutrality in fiber-reinforced composites: Evidence from a computational study
No full textWe report numerical evidence for neutrality of thin fibers to a prescribed uniform stress field in a fiber-reinforced composite. Elastic finite element analyses of fiber-reinforced composites are carried out with a conventional fully-resolved model and a novel dimensionally-reduced fiber model.The two modeling approaches are compared in the analysis of mechanical properties and matrix-fiber slip profiles. An analysis of the effectiveness of various fiber orientations with respect to the loading direction shows that the notion of inclusion neutrality, originally formulated for rigid line inclusions by Wang et al. [Journal of Applied Mechanics, 52(4), 814–822, 1985], holds also for linear elastic thin fibers with imperfect interface
“I beg you to tell me what has become of Djamila”: The Political Mobilization of Simone de Beauvoir’s Readers During the Boupacha Affair
No full textBy Sophia Millman This is a condensed version of a Masters thesis dedicated to the political mobilization of Simone de Beauvoir’s readers. The citations from the letters were translated from French by the author. *** On June 2, 1960, the French government ordered all copies of the daily Algiers edition of Le Monde seized and destroyed to suppress the publication of Simone de Beauvoir’s article “Pour Djamila Boupacha.” Beauvoir, a self-professed “woman of letters”, not “of action[1]”, and one ..
Was bringt die Föderalismusreform? Wahrscheinliche Effekte der geänderten Zustimmungspflicht
Full text linkThe recently enacted reform of German federalism is supposed to make legislation faster, more efficient and better. To what extent are these expectations justified? In order to assess the likely effects of the reform, this study uses a research design that was recently applied by the Research and Reference Services of the German Bundestag (parliament): we estimate the future effects of the reform by analyzing the impact it would have had on the legislation in the 14th and 15th term of the Bundestag if it had already been been in force at that time. In particular we ask: To what extent would the number of laws requiring the consent of the states' chamber, the Bundesrat, have been reduced? Which type of laws would have been affected by this reduction - the more controversial ones, or the less controversial ones? Which policy sectors would have seen the greatest reduction? How much would the reduction have increased the government's capacity to act effectively? Would the legislative process have been accelerated? -- Die verabschiedete Föderalismusreform soll die Gesetzgebung in Deutschland schneller, effizienter und besser machen. Inwiefern sind diese Erwartungen berechtigt? Zur Abschätzung der Reformfolgen auf die Bundesgesetzgebung folgen wir in dem vorliegenden Working Paper einer Vorgehensweise, die der Wissenschaftliche Dienst des Bundestages kürzlich in einer Studie angewandt hat: Die Auswirkungen der Föderalismusreform insbesondere auf die Zustimmungspflicht werden anhand der Gesetzgebung der 14. und 15. Legislaturperiode untersucht. Wir fragen insbesondere: Wie stark hätte sich der Anteil der Zustimmungsgesetze verringert, wenn die neuen Zustimmungsregeln schon in diesen beiden Legislaturperioden gegolten hätten? Wären eher zwischen Regierung strittige oder unstrittige Gesetze von der Zustimmungspflicht befreit worden? Welche Politikbereiche wären betroffen? Wie sehr hätte sich die politische Handlungsfreiheit der Bundesregierung erhöht? Wäre die Gesetzgebung durch die veränderten Zustimmungsregeln beschleunigt worden?
Characterization of the structural response of a lithiated SiO<sub>2</sub> / Si interface: A reactive molecular dynamics study
No full textWe report the results of a computational study regarding the mechanical properties of a lithiated Si/SiO2 interface using reactive molecular dynamics. The study is motivated by an intended application of SiO2-coated Sinanotubes as fibers in structural batteries with a fiber-reinforced composite architecture while serving as anodes. According to the results, main failure properties due to partly irreversible bond breakage during mechanical deformation are identified, indicating agreement with bond energy/bond order based estimates. Microscopic failure properties are also identified and interpreted in view of the observed processes of bonding degradation. In particular, the effect of Li distribution on the shear deformation response is evaluated as significant.Applied Mechanic
Accelerating multiscale finite element simulations of history-dependent materials using a recurrent neural network
No full textFE2 multiscale simulations of history-dependent materials are accelerated by means of a recurrent neural network (RNN) surrogate for the history-dependent micro level response. We propose a simple strategy to efficiently collect stress-strain data from the micro model, and we modify the RNN model such that it resembles a nonlinear finite element analysis procedure during training. We then implement the trained RNN model in the FE scheme and employ automatic differentiation to compute the consistent tangent. The exceptional performance of the proposed model is demonstrated through a number of academic examples using strain-softening Perzyna viscoplasticity as the nonlinear material model at the micro level
Is Felix Salten the author of the Mutzenbacher novel (1906)? Yes and no
No full textJosefine Mutzenbacher oder die Geschichte einer Wienerischen Dirne von ihr selbst erzählt, published in Vienna in 1906, represents one of the most fascinating cases of attribution of authorship in German literature. Although Josefine Mutzenbacher is usually attributed to Felix Salten, the author of the world-famous Bambi (1923), the novel’s authorship has never been confirmed, and many other candidates have been named as potential authors. Among them is Arthur Schnitzler, who published Reigen, a cycle of amorous adventures in Viennese society, in 1903. Some scholars, instead, have attributed the novel to such lesser-known writers as Ernst Klein and Willi Handl. The controversy surrounding the authorship of Josefine Mutzenbacher was the starting point for our stylometric analyses, and our results help to answer some unresolved questions in a debate that has lasted for more than 100 years. The analyses were performed using the R package Stylo, which enables an efficient application of Burrows’ Delta and its variants. Focusing on both the entire text and on the final pages, two different types of analysis were carried out: one combines 1200 different stylometric methods to compare the candidate authors Salten, Schnitzler, Bahr, Altenberg, Hofmannsthal, Klein and Handl; the other verifies the attribution using the ‘impostors’ method. The results show that the most probable author is Felix Salten, while none of the candidates could be identified as the author of the final pages, confirming the hypothesis that the text was left unfinished by Salten and completed by an as-yet-unidentified ghost-writer
A novel design for an RF MEMS resistive switch on PCB substrate
No full textCopyright @ 2008 Stimulation Action on MEM
A distributed disagreement-based protocol for synchronization of uncertain heterogeneous agents
No full textIn networks with heterogeneous and uncertain agents, fixed-gain control can lead to synchronization only if the uncertainties are relatively small. If the uncertainties are larger, we need to develop adaptive-gain approaches to achieve synchronization. In this work we propose an adaptive synchronization protocol, in case of full-state measurement, for uncertain heterogeneous agents based on a distributed disagreement reasoning. Specifically, we first define unknown gains (feedback and coupling gains) that could lead all agents to a homogeneous behavior and thus synchronization: however, since these gains are unknown in view of the unknown dynamics, we design adaptive laws for these gains that lead the agents toward synchronization. The adaptive laws are driven by a disagreement error which is calculated among neighbors: a Lyapunov analysis is presented for showing convergence of the synchronization error to zero.Accepted Author ManuscriptTeam Bart De Schutte
Adaptive synchronization in networks with heterogeneous uncertain Kuramoto-like units
No full textWe analyze adaptive synchronization capabilities in networks with Kuramoto-like units whose dynamical features are unknown and thus synchronization protocols must exhibit co-evolution capabilities. In the presence of heterogeneous and uncertain units, synchronization should be enabled by appropriate adaptive protocols that counteract the effect of heterogeneity. An interaction protocol is presented that is used by the units to communicate with each other: the protocol is based on a distributed disagreement measure. The aim of the protocol is to adapt feedback and coupling gains, so as to guarantee the emergence of a synchronous solution. The adaptive strategy is distributed, i.e. each unit self-determines the strength of its gains by using only neighboring measurements. Convergence of the synchronization error to zero is shown via Lyapunov analysis, and numerical examples demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed protocol.Accepted Author ManuscriptTeam Bart De Schutte
A New 3D Tool for Planning Plastic Surgery
Full text linkFace plastic surgery (PS) plays a major role in today medicine. Both for reconstructive and cosmetic surgery, achieving harmony of facial features is an important, if not the major goal. Several systems have been proposed for presenting to patient and surgeon possible outcomes of the surgical procedure. In this paper, we present a new 3D system able to automatically suggest, for selected facial features as nose, chin, etc, shapes that aesthetically match the patient's face. The basic idea is suggesting shape changes aimed to approach similar but more harmonious faces. To this goal, our system compares the 3D scan of the patient with a database of scans of harmonious faces, excluding the feature to be corrected. Then, the corresponding features of the k most similar harmonious faces, as well as their average, are suitably pasted onto the patient's face, producing k+1 aesthetically effective surgery simulations. The system has been fully implemented and tested. To demonstrate the system, a 3D database of harmonious faces has been collected and a number of PS treatments have been simulated. The ratings of the outcomes of the simulations, provided by panels of human judges, show that the system and the underlying idea are effectiv
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